Twitter new algorithmic timeline for everyone now by default

Twitter’s new algorithmic timeline was heralded as the end of the service by many, but when it launched, it amounted to nothing more than the natural evolution of the prior ‘while you were away’ feature.

The algorithm now appears to be enabled by default across the social network, with users reporting that the company started turning it on it across the service as early as March 15.

The feed’s documentation was updated in February at launch adding a paragraph saying that the behavior must be switched off, rather than on:

Tweets you are likely to care about most will show up first in your timeline. We choose them based on accounts you interact with most, Tweets you engage with, and much more. You can find instructions for how to turn off this behavior here.

The change to opt-in comes just a month after the feature was first launched on February 10, when Twitter said that it would require opting-in to see it, but noted at the time that it would become default in “the coming weeks.”

Now, however, reports are emerging that the company has gone and made it the law of the land, notifying users with a message when they first sign on. Indeed, in the blog post first announcing the change, the company noted, “...we’ll be turning on the feature for you in coming weeks—look out for a notification in your timeline.”

The change was seemingly rolled out within the past few days, judging by all the angry tweets: